Get Conscientious Objector Sample 4187

A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. In some countries, conscientious objectors are assigned to an alternative civilian service as a substitute for conscription or military service.

The Selective Service System does not accept requests for classification as a conscientious objector when the draft is not in effect. If the draft is reinstated, a draftee will have a short period of time after enlistment to request classification as a conscientious objector.

Over the course of the war, some conscientious objectors were actually taken with their regiments to France, where one could be shot for refusing to obey a military order. Thirty-four were sentenced to death after being court martialled but had their sentences commuted to penal servitude.

Service as a Conscientious Objector The person whose beliefs allow him to serve in the military but in a noncombatant capacity will serve in the Armed Forces but will not be assigned training or duties that include using weapons.

Before the American Revolution, most conscientious objectors were members of peace churches among them the Mennonites, Quakers, and Church of the Brethren which practiced pacifism. Other religious groups, like Jehovah's Witnesses, although not strictly pacifist, also refused to participate.

All conscientious objectors are required to register. ... A conscientious objector is one who is opposed to serving in the armed forces and/or bearing arms on the grounds of moral or religious principles.

A Soldier may submit a 1-A-0 conscientious objector application when the Soldier is sincerely opposed because of religious or deeply held moral or ethical (not political, philosophical or sociological) beliefs to participating as a combatant (including training in tactics or weapons) in war in any form.

At first, COs were sent to military prisons because they were considered to be soldiers. It was a minor triumph for the anti-conscription movement when a mid-1916 Army order ruled that COs who had been court martialled were to be sent to civil prisons.

Selective Service will probably assume you're one of them. If you get a draft notice, show up, and refuse induction, you'll probably be prosecuted. However, some people will slip through the cracks in the system, and some will win in court. If you show up and take the physical, there's a good chance that you'll flunk.

Throughout U.S. history, conscientious objectors have been penalized for their position. They often had to pay a fee in exchange for exemption from military service. When World War I broke out, the government restricted the rules for conscientious objectors, which led to the imprisonment of hundreds of Americans.